Week 2 - "Knowledge of Our Lady" (Day 22)

[MariaChristi]

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Today's Reading
True Devotion To the Blessed Virgin Mary: Nos. 106–110
Marks of authentic devotion to our Lady

106. First, true devotion to our Lady is interior, that is, it comes from within the mind and the heart and follows from the esteem in which we hold her, the high regard we have for her greatness, and the love we bear her.

107. Second, it is trustful, that is to say, it fills us with confidence in the Blessed Virgin, the confidence that a child has for its loving Mother. It prompts us to go to her in every need of body and soul with great simplicity, trust and affection.

108. Third, true devotion to our Lady is holy, that is, it leads us to avoid sin and to imitate the virtues of Mary. Her ten principal virtues are: deep humility, lively faith, blind obedience, unceasing prayer, constant self-denial, surpassing purity, ardent love, heroic patience, angelic kindness, and heavenly wisdom.

109. Fourth, true devotion to our Lady is constant. It strengthens us in our desire to do good and prevents us from giving up our devotional practices too easily. It gives us the courage to oppose the fashions and maxims of the world, the vexations and unruly inclinations of the flesh and the temptations of the devil. Thus a person truly devoted to our Blessed Lady is not changeable, fretful, scrupulous or timid.

110. Fifth, true devotion to Mary is disinterested. It inspires us to seek God alone in his Blessed Mother and not ourselves. The true subject of Mary does not serve his illustrious Queen for selfish gain. He does not serve her for temporal or eternal well-being but simply and solely because she has the right to be served and God alone in her

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I underlined the fifth mark, because it seems the most important to me. God is the end of all our devotion and Mary is the surest way to find Jesus, our Way, our Truth and our Life. Through her the Holy Spirit brought Jesus to the world and He continues to bring Him into our lives if we will say our “Yes” with Mary, for the Glory of God.
Prayers for today can be found [HERE](http://totalconsecration.ageofmary.com/preparation-22.html)